Wilson sees a future for Carter as a coach
SprinTec Track Club head coach, Maurice Wilson, says Olympian Nesta Carter has a lot to give to track and field in Jamaica as a coach, as he begins the next phase of his life.
Carter, 35, announced his retirement on Monday after a career which has seen him become the eighth fastest man in history over 100 metres with a best of 9.78 seconds.
He also tasted Olympic and World Championship gold medal success, as lead-off on Jamaica’s 4x100- metre relay teams.
With the departure of Carter, world 100m champion Yohan Blake is the only remaining active athlete left of the team that broke the 4x100m world record at the 2012 Olympics in London in 36.84 seconds. That quartet included Carter, Michael Frater, Blake and multiple World and Olympic champion, Usain Bolt.
With Frater having gone into coaching with Titans Track Club, Wilson says that he sees no reason why Carter cannot do the same should he have the desire to pursue a similar path.
“As a coach and educator, let me say that having the practical experience is about 60 per cent of the journey. But having the knowledge of the processes, the methodologies and the principles, and also having the experience of coaching personalities also make a difference,” Wilson told STAR Sports. “So, of course, I would encourage Nesta to go into coaching. He has the experience, he has the personality.”
HAS THE ABILITY
While Wilson believes that Carter has the ability to help mould future athletes, he says that if Carter is serious about the job, he should attempt to add to the wealth of experience gained from his competitive career to be more rounded.
“I would also want to advise him to add to his repertoire of knowledge. Not necessarily to go to a college and do a degree, but to do World Atheltics-related courses or do some practice similar to what Michael Frater is doing now to ease himself into the profession.”
In a press release on Monday, Carter said that his retirement was a combination of not being able to give of his best as a competitor, as well as an injury that has kept him from competition since March.